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Goodsmile’s official Nendoroid site updated today with the news that a set of Petit Nendoroids is being produced called “Nendoroid Petit Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu Ochuugen Set”. Chuugen (中元) is the name of gifts given at the Bon Festival in July or August in Japan, and the set is specially packaged as a gift to be given this summer (either to someone who you’re indebted to or to yourself). The set retails for 3,000 yen and contains five Petit Nendoroid figures: Tsuruya-san, Nagato Yuki, Suzumiya Haruhi, Asahina Mikuru, and Asakura Ryouko. All are school swimsuit versions, holding inflatable rings and standing 8 cm in total height on swimmer’s starting blocks. Sculpting work is from Ageta Yukio and Yamada Tetsuya with cooperation from Nendoron.

Preorders for the set open on June 9th, but are only available from the Tokimeki Mall online shop or Circle K / Sankus convenience store locations, so a proxy will likely be required for those outside Japan. Production is limited to 5,000 sets. Figure images below:

Ero figure maker Gigapulse updated their official site earlier today with product descriptions for their “Gigakore #13” set: three new figures from Liquid eroge Ryoujoku Guerrilla Kari 3. Amiami followed with listings this evening for Shizel Beltier, Sandy Gregoire, and Nora Stewart. All three are scheduled to retail in fall 2008 at 6,825 yen retail and 1/8 scale. The Shizel and Sandy kits also come in alternate color DX versions (Shizel, Sandy) that include male torsos and retail at 8,925 yen, while Nora comes in a “B type” configuration at 6,825 yen. Nora is the only one credited with a sculptor: Uroyasu Kanchi (洞安勘智). Images below:

We got our first look at this set in Hobby Japan last month, and now the Asakura Ryouko & Expansion Parts Nendoroid action figure set from Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu is available for preorder! The Ryouko Nendoroid comes with two faces, two arm sets, several hands, a knife, and a school bag. The expansion set includes a ponytail hair part and summer uniform arms for Haruhi, a witch’s hat, cloak, Shamisen, and Starling (Sterling) Inferno for Yuki, and finally bangs, hair, and legs (with white socks) for Mikuru. The set retails in September at 5,000 yen, with a sculpt from Nendoron (Kodama Youhei). Images below:

HD reader Kent posted a comment to our Shuraki Rize review this evening with a link to an image at Akiba Hobby that confirms what we’d suspected: The next entry in the Shuraki figure multimedia series will be Monica Dread Olivier, the White Raven companion of Nida and Rize. No release date or other information is listed, though it’s noteworthy to see that according to the promotional poster in the Akiba Hobby photo the character designer may have changed (the illustration is from Jun・K/Sumi Keiichi, not Igarashi Aki as per the original). We’ll keep an eye out for further details (and I’ll try to remember what event that photo is from…). (no more)